Primary tridecanols are well known and commonly used to synthesize plasticizers and surface active agents. The most common tridecanol alcohol is a completely branched alcohol known as tridecyl alcohol or isotridecanol. Tridecyl alcohol is most commonly produced by tetramerizing propylene and performing the oxo hydroformylation reaction as described in Industrial Organic Chemicals; Wittcoff, Harold A., Reuben, Bryan G., and Plotkin, Jeffrey S., Wiley-Interscience, 2013 p. 221. This type of alcohol is marketed by ExxonMobil as EXXAL 13. A second type of primary tridecanol is produced by performing the oxo hydroformylation reaction on a linear dodecene as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,183,446. This yields a tridecanol containing 40% or greater of branched species.
While both types of tridecanol can be used to synthesize useful derivatives like plasticizers and surface active agents, the high degree of branching limits the functionality of these derivatives. There is a need for a tridecanol with a lower proportion of branched species.